Cross-country skiing: Kershaw settles for 16th

OBERHOF, Germany — Devon Kershaw of Sudbury, Ont., was the top Canadian once again at the Tour de Ski, finishing 16th in the men’s classic-ski sprint competition on Sunday.

The 27-year-old, who was the top Canadian on Saturday after placing 10th in the distance race, advanced into Sunday’s head-to-head heats with the fastest 30 athletes after the qualification round, but his bid for the podium fell short when he crossed the line third in the quarter-finals.

“Devon had another strong day, but just came up a little short in his opening heat,” Canadian team leader Dave Wood. “Sprinting is very technical and you need to have both a strong anaerobic system with technique. We have another sprint (Monday), but the hard part of the Tour really kicks in after that.”

Kershaw was the lone Canadian to advance into the head-to-head heats.

Alex Harvey of St. Ferreol-les-Neiges, Que., fell just short of qualifying for the heats after finishing 32nd. Ivan Babikov of Canmore, Alta., was 56th, while George Grey of Rossland, B.C., qualified 64th. Sara Renner of Canmore, Alta., was 42nd in the women’s sprint.

Norway’s Eldar Roenning was first in the men’s race, while Slovenia’s Petra Majdic won the women’s gold.

The Tour de Ski, modelled after cycling’s Tour de France, moves to Prague, Czech Republic, for a downtown sprint race on Monday night. The 10-day Tour includes eight competitions at five venues in three countries, wrapping up in Val di Fiemme, Italy, on Jan. 10.

Meanwhile, 2006 Olympian Phil Widmer of Banff, Alta., captured the gold medal at the Teck Sprint Series on the Haywood NorAm Circuit in Valcartier, Que., on Sunday. Stefan Kuhn of Canmore took the silver, while Toronto’s Lenny Valjas won the bronze.

On the women’s side, Banff’s Dasha Gaiazova won her second gold medal in as many days. Gaiazova had earlier locked up a spot on Canada’s Olympic squad. Gaiazova shared the podium with Olympic teammate Perianne Jones of Almonte, Ont., who took the silver, while Andrea Dupont of Timmins, Ont., earned the bronze.

The NorAm Race Series continues in Valcartier, Que., on Tuesday with the distance races.

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